Month: July 2015

New York, NY – Since 2008, pressures on personal, national, and international finance have drawn our attention to a previously underappreciated group of professionals. These men and women are economists who are bringing their knowledge and expertise into the arena of world markets. They include notables such as former Federal Reserve chairmen Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke. Many of the best economists, however, are not household names. Instead they are scholars, proving the worth of their study by rescuing financial markets and pointing the way forward in troubled times.

The Managing Director at Duquesne Capital Management in New York, Christian Broda is a good example of how university expertise can impact real-world finance. With a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT, Broda taught and did research for the University of Chicago until beginning his work at Duquesne. When doomsday thinkers were declaring the fall of the dollar last year, Broda stated. “It seems wise to keep your investment in the US, and think twice about following the conventional wisdom that emerging markets is the place to put your money.” As overseas markets struggle into 2015, it looks like Broda has a gift for predicting the future.

There is nothing magical, however, about Christian Broda’s analysis or the work of other qualified economists. Their ability to predict market changes (or even to point out the unpredictable) comes as a result of scientific study. Broda has researched and published extensively for both academic journals and popular media outlets. His encouragement to stay the course in US markets, for example, comes as a result of scientific research he conducted along with Piero Ghezzi of Deutsche Bank and Eduardo Levy Levy-Yeyati of the University Tocurato Di Tell.*

As financial markets become more complex, people will rely more heavily on expert economists for investing decisions, prediction of market changes, and everyday advice about spending. Like medical doctors, lawyers, and scientists in the twentieth century, economists will be indispensible professionals in the twenty-first.
* Broda, Christian M. and Ghezzi, Piero and Levy-Yeyati, Eduardo Levy, The New Global Balance (March 23, 2009). Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1409455 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1409455

Everyone is always going to be needing their homes cleaned up every once in a while. No matter what happens with the economy, and no matter what kind of situation people are in, that is always going to be true. So, when two men started up the company called Handy they knew that it would do well. They knew that people would use their services because of what they offered. They are a cleaning and handyman company. They have people doing all sorts of jobs at various locations, not just in the United States, but also in Europe.
But, even though these kinds of services are needed, and even though the people who started this company most likely thought that it would succeed, I don’t think that even they thought that it would do this good. The company has hit one million a week. They are making a lot of money, and they are gaining a lot of customers and new employees. Why are they doing so well for themselves? What makes them so different than all of the other companies that offer the same type of services?
Well, Handy is different in that it is all about the modern would. Handy uses a mobile app to conduct their business, and that has made them very popular. They pay their workers a good wage, with an average of eighteen dollars an hour, and they allow them to work as much or as little as they like. They aren’t a traditional company, and that makes them appealing to may people. They are doing well for themselves because of all of the unique features of their company. They set out to do something different, and they have succeeded at doing that. They may even be doing better right now then they even would have hoped to do.

With the unpredictable climate of modern-day financial markets particularly investment banking, having a reliable company or consultant as a virtual guide helps. For any investor contracting the best financial advisor or firm to oversee company transactions or business deals, finding a capable professional is a prerequisite. It takes a mastermind to maximum profitability opportunities.

There’s a reasonable number of investment banking specialist firms out there. An investor can choose a small, limited-access boutique or a giant-sized firm serving a global community. A trusted example such as the Chicago-based unit Madison Street Capital (Facebook) is a renowned branch that’s in a capacity to deliver impressive output. The firm’s primary focus at an international level is on private entities and middle-market public ventures. In this capacity, Madison Street Capital (Youtube) offers top-level services and an outstanding global reputation. The company serves corporate investors throughout North America, Africa, and Asia. The services offered range from financial advice, valuation services and merger/corporate M/A (merger/acquisition) transactions, etc. A global player enterprise a broader landscape of financial products and services that local investment banking boutiques don’t offer.

When choosing a reliable investment banking provider it’s crucial to include all considers. A company’s track record and industry knowledge/experience are key determinants to think about carefully. Investment banking deals require real talent and an expansive interest of how the numbers add up. It’s a complex science and investors stand to gain or lose based on how, why and when they commit. Every investor has an agenda. The moment this investor finds a reputable firm or advisor to deliver the goals described, it’s sensible to continue the partnership. Some investors commission the same unit to handle all their investment banking needs. With a sea of deals nearing the deadline and a handful of experts handling the projects some companies turnaround is extremely slow. Consistency and speed are crucial elements in the investment banking world. As such, it’s better an investor avoids limited capacity firms, especially when managing large projects.

This year’s investment banking forecast looks stormy. The urgent demand to boost profitability is an eternal journey it seems. With the right investment banking consulting team, it won’t be as strenuous to fathom the challenges ahead. The U.S. investment banking sector is still surviving the post-crisis journey and thought leaders have been observing the trends closely. They’re urging investors to put extra emphasis on maximizing profitability.

The industry hasn’t shifted course entirely, it’s still the cyclical business it’s always been. Surely, the time has changed and there’s room for improvements, but it’s off to a sluggish start. Thought leaders remain positive and vigilant about boosting investment profitability. The landscape and behavior of investors have seen minor improvements which keep the masses at a dark place. Cybersecurity and poor management are considerations that keep raising pressing questions about the future of investment banking.

Eucatex was founded in 1951 in São Paulo, Brazil. Its home was at the Americana Sawmill Americana which was established in 1923. In 1954 Eucatex opened their first mill now known as the Fiberboard Industrial Unit in Salto. It was there that soft board production started. Just a short time later they dove in to the manufacturing of ceiling tiles and panels. Between the years of 1956 and 1965 the company begin to install its first offices throughout Brazil. By 1965 their production capacity had increased to 100 tons per day. It was also this year that exports of ceiling tiles and panels to Europe began.

Between the 60s and 80s Eucatex expanded production. They did so by setting up new hardware mills as well as a Metal Industrial Unit in Barueri. During this time they also expanded the location of their offices to have representatives in other locations. Those locations included Holland, Germany, the UK, The United States and Mexico. During this time came the need for Eucatex to begin producing their own paints as well. In the beginning this was just for use on their own ceiling tiles and such but it expanded into a full blown product line as well. By the end of the 80s Eucatex had a presence in over 50 countries worldwide. They had four different production categories including Forestry, Metallic, Mineral and Wood at this time. They also invested in land during this time to help self-sustain their supply of raw material.

Over the next few decades leading up to the present, Eucatex opened new production factories and continued to expand its reach and product offerings. In 2011 when Eucatex celebrated their 60th anniversary, they were the market leader and manufacturer in several different products on the Brazilian Market. Those products included wall partitions, doors, paints, varnishes, laminate flooring and MDP / MDF panels. They at that time employed over 2,000 employees and were exporting products to 7 countries worldwide.

The president company of Eucatex is the Maluf family. The chair the company is Flavio Maluf an entrepreneur and mechanical engineer. Flavio is also the president of the group GrandFood which is the owner of brands Premier Pet and Golden. Flavio graduated from FAAP and is a Brazilian born in 1961. His occupation is a lawyer and he was married to Jacqueline de Lourdes Torres Coutinho from 1986 to 2007.

The Brazilian shoe business has been on fire for the last twenty or thirty years. When the prices in the Italian and Spanish footwear market sky-rocketed, savvy shoe companies began exporting men’s and women’s shoes from Brazil. Brazilian shoe factory prices made shoes a popular priced and stylish purchase in the U.S. market. Smart investors, who were connected with the shoe business, made a serious return on their investments even though doing business with those factories during the early years was a challenge for several reasons.

Shoes are not the only commodity investors can turn into money. The precious stone business has always been a great way to make money in Brazil. The oil business is another wise investment even though the oil business is going through some changes, according to BRL Trust, one of Brazil’s administrator and manager of investment funds, mergers and acquisitions.

The reason for BRL’s optimism is simple. Brazil is the sixth largest economy in the world, and it is home for more than 186 million people. When you combine the other Latin American consumers and North American consumers with Brazil’s consumers, there are a staggering 900 million potential consumers that use Brazilian products. Brazilian exports have grown faster than any other country, so Brazil has become a leader in world trade. China is Brazil’s largest trading partner.

BRL Trust (Wikipedia) also believes that investing in Brazil’s science and technology fields could be a smart move since the country is a major player in oil exploration, aircraft building and software and deepwater development. Plus Brazil’s competence in producing ethanol and biodiesel fuel is considered first class.

But the main reason BRL Trust (Facebook) thinks investing in Brazil is the right thing to do is, the government allows investors to send their profits home rather than forcing them to reinvest their profits in the Brazilian market.

Humana Inc. may be making some major changes in the near future. Humana, a U.S. health insurance company, has received a number of offers to buy them out including an offer from Cigna. Earlier this week, Aetna through their hat in the ring and has made a formal cash and stock bid to buy out Humana. The market value of Humana, as of Thursday, was valued at $27.59 billion. As of right now, according to The Wall Street Journal, Aetna is set to buy Humana for $34.1 billion. If the deal with Kenneth Griffin goes through Aetna would be paying roughly $230 a share for Humana which is a premium of 23 percent. Between the cash and stocks payout the deal is estimated to be an impressive $37 billion total. So far this deal that is in the making has proven to be extremely lucrative for both parties. Aetna saw their shares jump 4.3 percent, bringing their shares to a record high of $133.05 per share. Meanwhile, Humana saw a 6.5 percent increase in their shares bringing them to $196.21 per share. While shareholders are excited about the merge some leading medical groups are very concerned. According to Medscape there are some concerns about the third and fourth largest US insurance companies merging. Medical groups fear that this merge has the potential to limit choices for patients and stop doctors from joining certain insurance networks which would force physicians to lower their fees. This merge overall looks like it will make healthcare more affordable for consumers and potentially place the hardship on physicians.

In every aspect of marketing there is always one product that seems to stand apart from the rest. Some companies may market well enough to get through to a limited audience. There are others, however, that have great marketing and quality products. These are the products that break the mold and set the bar. These are companies that become the companies that everyone else wants to beat. This is what is happening with Beneful.

The brand has been around for a long time. It has become a staple in the homes of dog owners because it is a brand that has transformed into a diverse collection of quality dog foods. Beneful has a lot of dog food meal plans, but at the very core there is still something that makes these pet food creators come back to creativity. There are a lot of other things that the company could do, but Beneful doesn’t have to go overboard with promotions. A brand loyalty has already been developed, and this has really made it easier for the Beneful company to promote both wet and dry food for dogs.

It has not gone unnoticed that others have tried to dethrone Beneful, but Beneful has a core competency that expands pass what the competition is doing. This brand has managed to develop vegetable blends for pets that desire different foods. That may be one of the most enlightening things about the Beneful brand. A patron of this brand can buy another selection from the brand knowing that there is still a quality dog food brand.

There are a lot of people that like to buy Beneful for their dogs, but a large majority of them probably do not even know how many different food choices are available. There are a vast amount of choices, and some of these foods even help promote better health. That is why the Beneful brand is often promoted by veterinarians. These are not a lot of brands that are geared specifically towards health, but the creators of Beneful dog foods have thought of almost everything. There are dog food themes that go with the type of brands that are purchased. This is good for the dog owner that cannot communicate with an animal in terms of finding health issues. Sometimes a dog that is eating healthy dog food is the only indication that the dog may be eating properly.

According to Fortune, FreedomPop is gaining much attention and backing. To those that are not familiar with the company, FreedomPop is a cellular service company that offers 500MB of data, 200 voice minutes, and 500 text messages to subscribers at no cost each month.

With the help of these free plans, FreedomPop hopes to reach 1 million subscribers by the end of their third quarter. The rapid growth to almost 1 million subscribed has caused much attention to be gained by supporters as well as other cellular services. FreedomPop has been able to raise $30 million which can help the company to continue to grow.

FreedomPop has much room for growth and a lot of potential. In addition to raising $30, FreedomPop has been presented with many acquisition offers in which they turned down. Though FreedomPop turned down several acquisition offers, it may be interested in such offers in the future. According to the co-founder and CEO, Stephen Stokols, he is waiting for FreedomPop to expand before any offers are really considered.

If you are asking what’s the catch, there is not catch. This company is able to offer free services because it is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). This simply means that FreedomPop is able to piggy back off of other cellular carrier’s services. By not owning their own infrastructure FreedomPop is able to save a lot of money but in order to attract new customers they have to spend money. The cost to piggyback off of other cellular carriers services is not fee. FreedomPop has to come out of pocket for all of the free services that they offer.

Even though the company may seem to be losing money because of the free services it offers, FreedomPop is able to recuperate some of those monies with the help of add on features. Customers are able to increase their monthly data allotment, sign up for a data rollover plan, or even sign up for an international number that will allow the individual to make and receive international calls without having to pay expensive international rates for a small fee.

The CEO and co-founder of the QI Group, Vijay Eswaran has continued his recent successes with the government of India providing his company with a clean bill of financial health. Eswaran is one of the leaders in the world of multi level marketing through his role as the CEO of the QI Group, which sees him head a company that is growing across the globe through a series of linkups with major organizations and a superior range of products. Eswaran and his fellow QI executives are now calling for stronger controls for the multi level marketing industry in India to avoid any problems being caused for his legitimate company by other entrants into the Indian based industry.

Eswaran has always been at pains to point out his company is a legitimate and financially stable entrant into the industry with a long history dating back to the 1990s. The CEO embarked on a number of educational programs and work experience options to make sure he took the best advice about multi level marketing, which included studying the programs of the technology based giant IBM. Vijay Eswaran remains an active CEO offering his own services for training seminars and the meetings organized by QI to make sure all individuals within the company come into contact with him at some point.

There is more to Vijay Eswaran than just the business side of his personality, which has seen the entrant onto the rich list of Malaysia write a self help book detailing the secrets of his success. In The Sphere Of Silence explains the spiritual side of Eswaran that he states helps keep him grounded and focused on the matters at hand each and every day. Eswaran embarks on a period of silent meditation each day, which brings him focus on the issues running through his mind and makes sure he has the chance to only work on the matters that are important to his own world every day.

QNET is a prominent direct selling company in Asia that has been gaining in popularity in recent months. The company has taken on the global industry of direct selling and positioned itself as a leader in this highly competitive niche. The latest from QNET is that they have unveiled a new product for their global audience that is sure to take the world by storm. They are releasing three powdered food supplements under the LifeQode range that are 100% organic, halal, and vegetarian.

The reason that QNET feels that LifeQode will be unlike any other supplement of its kind is it has been formulated and tested to help restore balance to the human body replenishing vital nutrients that are needed using only food extracts, giving the human body the proper care that it deserves. QNET announced that this three new supplement package of health and wellness supplement will be called Kenta, Berry Xtreme, and EDG3. All three of these new products are currently being made from a unique selection of all natural derived ingredients that promise to provide the human body better health and an overall improved well-being.

The regional general manager of QNET, Khaled Diab, says that Kenta, Berry Xtreme, and EDG3 each in their own way provide gentle hormone stimulation, amazing immune boosting ability, and phytonutrients derived from berries. The key to a fulfilling and a long life is your health, and these products are designed to help the body to natural draw the nutrients it needs to thrive each day. By combining these three unique supplements, QNET feels that LifeQode has finally cracked what has long been believed the code to natures formula for living a longer and healthier lifestyle.

The best part about the Kenta, Berry Xtreme, and EDG3 supplements is that they are completely lifestyle friendly. These supplements all come in easy to carry convenient pouches and are available in delicious flavors. Supplements can also be combined and selected based on their nutritional value, depending in part to the individual need of the user. QNET representatives feel that these has been a dire need for these products on the market for far too long, and the time has come where consumers are finally going to have the opportunity to better their lives through the supplements they take.

QNET pushed this product to the forefront of their industry because they feel that a nutrient crisis is taking over this world, and if the body can not regenerate effectively, eventually a long list of chronic illnesses will soon follow. The combination of a balanced diet and the LifeQode supplements could add many healthy years to a persons life.